Google Now Expands, Adds Homescreen Widget

Yesterday Google issued an update of its search app for Android. Among the modest changes were expanded Google Now content and functionality. For those devices running Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) or higher, which is now about 13.6 percent of handsets, Google Now now includes movie ratings from Rotten Tomatoes and movie passes from Fandango. (Apple’s Siri recently added the ability to buy movie tickets through Fandango.) For those in the market for a home, real-estate listings from Zillow will now appear. College sports scores will soon show up as well. Finally, users can add a Google Now widget to the Android home screen (mostly unnecessary) or lock screen (useful). Google Now may be described as “persistent” or “predictive” search. In many instances Google Now can be extremely useful (weather) and even surprising (i.e., when it tells you to leave for the airport at a certain...